Congressman Jonathan Jackson Gives Legislation Update

U.S. Congressman Jonathan Jackson. PHOTO PROVIDED BY CONGRESSMAN JONTHAN JACKSON.
U.S. Congressman Jonathan Jackson. PHOTO PROVIDED BY CONGRESSMAN JONTHAN JACKSON.

Congressman Jonathan Jackson Gives Legislation Update

By Tia Carol Jones

Congressman Jonathan Jackson (D-Dist. 1) most recently introduced legislation around the Rent Stabilization Fund to deal with affordable housing issues. With this legislation, Jackson wants to expand the amount of Section 8 vouchers and to offer a loan program for people to have a low-rate interest so that they can afford their apartments.

Jackson said currently, there are 6.8 million units in demand for affordable housing and 11.2 million people feeling a housing burden, with fifty percent of their income going toward their rent and having to double up in beds. Jackson, along with Congressman Ted Lieu (California), Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (Texas) and Congressman Kevin Mullin (California), introduced the Prevent Homelessness Act on April 15th.

Jackson has also co-sponsored the Affordable Housing Act with Congresswoman Maxine Waters (California). That bill proposes $150 Billion for housing assistance that would address chronic homelessness being experienced across the country. Jackson is currently working on the draft of a bill to address food insecurity in the urban market in the Agriculture Committee.

“We are housing burdened all over the city of Chicago and doubly burdened on the South and West sides of Chicago,” Jackson said.

Jackson said that by a classic definition of the Department of Census, people who have gone back to live with their parents or a relative, it is classified as a housing burden and a derivative of homelessness. With these pieces of legislation, the hope is that it will stabilize rents in communities and ensure residents are not paying 50% of their income towards housing, which Jackson said, is also described as a housing burden.

Jackson said he chose affordable as one of his platforms because of the needs in the community. Since he has been in office, he has been focused on guns, gas, groceries and rent.

“Gun violence is still a scourge; a leading cause of death in our community for people under 35. Rents have soared post-pandemic, the grocery situation is bad, which is also a contributing factor -- lack of fresh produce – to the rise in Black maternal health concerns, as well as the gas prices, which was a general concern about the rise of inflation,” he said.

“Inflation has hit our community extremely hard, demonstrated in the cost of groceries, the cost of rent and now with the cost of insurance.”

Jackson said the rising cost of insurance is a function of global warming/climate crisis. He pointed to tornadoes in the Chicago area in February as a function of global warming.

Jackson also worked on legislation to honor Marshall Walter “Major” Taylor with a Congressional gold medal. Taylor was a world champion cyclist who lived in the 1st District at the YMCA in Bronzeville.

“It’s a world class name, a world class story, there was no one for him to look up to … restoring his honor, giving him the honor and dignity he deserves, is very important,” Jackson said.

Jackson is using his influence to work with the Biden administration to be receptive to voices of the Black community, who he said do not want to see an expansion of the Israel-Hamas War. He said the Black community wants to see the administration deal with the migrant crisis and what is going on in Haiti and Sudan more humanely and on the same level as Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. Jackson voted no on HR 8034, the Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act 2024.

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